I admit it, I’m a Christmas purist. Keep all your Hallmark-ness about becoming a princess (what does that have to do with Christmas?) or finding love in [insert exotic destination here], every year for me it’s Rudolph, the Grinch and Charlie Brown and his sad little tree. I enjoy a world where the little guy, even a dorky little dentist, Cindy Lou Who and everyboy Charlie Brown get their day.
Perhaps the media all missed Charlie Brown this year, as I did, because I could only find it paid on all the channels I already pay for. Oh, it’s extra to see Charlie Brown at Christmas, you’ve only been a member here for 20 years so you have to pay extra now.
Anyone who’s ever seen a Charlie Brown episode knows that Lucy tees up a football and promises Charlie Brown she won’t snatch it away when he comes to kick it. No, I promise you won’t wipe out this time, trust me! Then she inevitably pulls it away. That’s life for Charlie Brown so why doesn’t our mainstream media get it yet? It’s been decades!
Donald Trump isn’t even president yet, but he’s threatening to take over Greenland, Canada and the Panama Canal. That is red meat to keep his base occupied while he gives away the store to his Broligarchy of Billionaires (BoB) and leaves the other 99.8% of us holding the bag. Be prepared to lose public education, healthcare, access to affordable meat and produce, and see your Social Security check dwindle before your eyes before it disappears entirely. All while the crazy weather becomes even more disastrous for the American people because this so-called gilded age will glorify the raping of our lands for fossil fuels “like you’ve never seen before.”
There’s a great scene in Charlie Wilson’s War where the late, great actor Philip Seymour Hoffman explains that if people are tittillated by sex and drugs on one hand, the manipulator can hide a battleship behind the other. Trump never fails to put a shiny object of adoration for his fans, of ridicule and derision by his critics, only to grift with the other hand. He tried to steal a presidential election, for heaven’s sake. He stole confidential documents that belong to you and me. He and his family have illegally made untold millions off the presidency and are poised to make even more in Trump II, with the BoB as his co-conspirators.
There will never be a budget reduction or lessening of the deficit. There is no Deep State, it’s just a ruse to dole out political patronage to the MAGA faithful. If anything, salaries for these 50,000 political hack positions will be increased. The BoB wants environmental, employment and other regulations to be axed, but that’s not going to save money either. Why? Because that’s not the point. Instead of draining the swamp, Trump brings it with him into every business enterprise, including his biggest ever, the presidency. There are no ethics rules, and SCOTUS has made sure that anything he does in office is protected.
Did you notice that we no longer have a glaring election integrity problem? We don’t, because Trump won. That means it was never an issue in the first place. Ditto “woke-ness,” which means whatever the person who says it wants it to mean, CRT (critical race theory, never a problem for high schoolers), and the threat that children will be irreparably harmed if school and public libraries (even bookstores) have books that mention gender or racial equality. Or if the two transgender athletes in a state ever wish to use a public restroom assigned to their assumed gender? Not an issue.
Political vendettas have existed as long as politics itself, and the flawed human beings who become politicians. We’re all flawed, silly, not just politicians, we just see their foibles. There’s not one angelic party and one run by the devil him/herself. I’m just mad at that guy for winning, so I’m gonna find a reason to toss him in jail or at least audit his taxes. I do believe in good and evil, but not a broad brush to say all Muslims are bad, or my mother treated me badly so let’s let all women die in hospital parking lots awaiting non-existent medical care.
Aptly, as we celebrated Jesus’ birth yesterday (between shopping for deals on Amazon), WWJD? Do unto others. Respect others. Help out your neighbor. Mentor a young person interested in your field. Say a kind word. Give to charity (a real one, not a PAC). Adopt that stray dog that’s been hanging around your yard for weeks (after you take the time to find out that he’s not lost, he’s abandoned). Stop doomscrolling for a day, hide your phone and take a walk in nature, or read a good book. You’ll be all the better for it. You read this blog and it offered some solutions instead of just ranting, see?
Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, New Year, use the time to spend with family, regroup, and get ready for 2025. Cheers! Dee
Cooking with Dee 